Recent reviews by ♠♥_Hastyle1_♣♦

Time Bought: 1st day of release June 18, 2019
Money Spent: $32 on GMG
Worth The Price: Yes
Mouse & Keyboard or Controller: xbox controller
Position In Game At Time Of Review: Completed game on all difficulties. Got all items, weapons,etc. Killed all bosses at least once. 100% map. Maxed all shards. Now working on achievements.

GET THIS GAME NOW, if you are a fan of Symphony of the Night (SotN). I had no idea this game was being made. If I did, I would have been part of the Jumpstarter project. I have been asking and wondering when the next Castlevania game was in the progress of being made. And to my surprise, this game did not disappoint. I could go on and on in this review about such things as gameplay, graphics, controls, etc. But that would make this review long and probably already what you've read in other reviews. I will state about my 9 rating for this game though, which is because the DLC process is currently very slow and no information has been given on process or release dates, and currently the game is very short lived. Most people who own the game have already done all they can with it. Besides that it is an absolute joy to play!!

Time Bought: Preordered
Money Spent: $20
Worth The Price?: Yes
Mouse & Keyboard or Controller: xbox 360 controller
Position In Game At Time Of Review: Finished all Campagin stages on Easy, Normal, Hard. Got Necromancer DLC. Got all capes, weapons, headware, body armor, relics (for all characters all maxed out to level 3), and talismans for all classes. Now just doing Endless and Campaign modes once in a while. 165 hrs played as of this review.

I originally pre ordered this game to support the old school Gauntlet reboot vision. But only played about 30 minutes of it because online players were just too gold hungry in the beginning. It took me about the end of the year last year to finally put an honest effort into trying out this game, and it's a good thing I did. The game is graphically decent. It doesn't stress out your GPU that much so you can most likely play it on a non gaming laptop. The controls are very fluid and precise with the only problem I had was a couple broken buttons on my controller (but I know that's on my end lol). The challenge of the game is divided pretty well. Easy being for beginners to using a controller or new people to gaming. Normal is probably the most popular and can be somewhat challenging to new players. Hard is the most challenging, but to veteran players they can run through stages solo. There is no set sequence you have to play in Campaign mode. You literally pick out a part on the map and play that stage (after you've unlocked and completed that part of course). Changing from Public online or Private play between friends is as easy as pressing Start and unchecking a box. You also have a choice to play Colluseum mode, in which there is a daily 6 wave challenge of enemies and obstacles for you to pass to obtain a 'cape' for your character as well as 10,000 gold. Some are challenging but most can be done solo. Even though in the beginning I was unable to solo many Colluseum dailies. This prize can be done with all characters daily. And lastly is Endless mode in which you endlessly go through waves and waves of the game. With every wave getting a little harder and harder. Every 19th wave you are given a 'portal' to continue this mode at another time if you want. This is very popular with the veterans and online community who still play.

This game is not just a hack and slash. You have to use a little strategy and timing to actually be proficient at this game and advance in skills. Not only that, but each weapon for each character gives you a few different movesets, so you not only have to master the characters but the individual weapons as well, or just pick one specific one you truly like and just play with that forever haha. All in all I really really enjoyed this game. It has been a great 'time waster'. I would highly recommend it for anyone who has a short time to play games, or long time as well if you want to invest in it. The online community is very small now since the game is very old, but they are quite fun to play with and most don't need gold anymore so you can rack up money quite fast now.

Time Bought: Owned regular Darksiders, don't recall when or where I got Warmastered Edition
Money Spent: No Steam order history, don't recall where I got it
Worth The Price: N/A, but mostly YES
Mouse & Keyboard or Controller: xbox 360 controller
Position In Game At Time Of Review: Completed game on Normal, got every legendary, got Abysmal Armor, got Apocolypse sword, Wrath and Life meters full, currently farming souls and getting last 5 artifacts to get the 100% completion achievement.

I've played the regular Darksiders game back in 2012 a few month after it came out, but only for less than 10 hours before moving on to other games. Back then I thought the regular Darksiders was an AMAZING game. The Warmastered Edition is pretty much the 5 year upgrade you usually do with your car to better suit your more current needs and requirements. The graphics are pure and astounding to the eyes. Certain scenes are purely breathtaking. It will definitely be the first thing players of the regular game will notice, and will be awed at while replaying through those old levels again. The voice actors are top notch! None skip a beat and play their respective characters very well. The music is also an A++ as it provides excitment and emotion to scenes with an assemble of finely orchestrated scores. (The soundtrack can be found in your Steam library btw). The framerates, even with the upgraded graphics, do not skip a beat and there is practically no loss per fps while playing.

Now that those are out of the way, lets talk about the gameplay. Let me get it out there and say IT'S AMAZING!!! If you are into games that play like the God of War series, Soul Reavers series, old Tomb Raider series, or any games based on their demographics, then you will definitely LOVE this game. The puzzles are plentiful, and can be annoying at times like many in this genre. The weapons fit the character and are fun to switch out and use (including weapons from 2 of the other horsemen). Upgrading these weapons with more moves and power is quite fun. They never 'overrun' you with moves and a certain weapon isn't needed to advance, so they are there for their main reason and that is to kill enemies in your way lol. Speaking of which, there are plenty of enemies to battle and kill even after passing that stage of the game or backtracking. Even though there are enemies around, they balanced it pretty well to never overwelm you with numbers. THQ Nordic has fixed all the bugs from the regular game so you're experience will be smooth throughout your gameplay. All in all the only reason I did not give this game a perfect score is because after 20+ hours there is no replayability, unless you want to challenge yourself and play the much harder difficulties. I've personally, after grinding to complete the game, felt I still wanted more after completing it, but that is normal in games you have spent much time in. Well, enough with this review, I'm going to start on my Darksiders 2 Deathinitive Edition gaming now lol.

Btw, Darksiders 3 will be coming out later this year <3

Time Bought: Preordered
Money Spent: $43.20 from GMG
Worth The Price?: No
Mouse & Keyboard or Controller: xbox 360 controller
Position In Game At Time Of Review: Finished single player after 4 years exactly, doing DLC, going back and collecting what I missed.

I was in such anticipation for this game to release back in 2014 and preordered it once it was available since I absolutely loved the first LoS (as well as the MoF game that came to pc a little after LoS2). When the game finally released, I was awe struck as before with the beautiful and engulfing graphics right from the start to the very end, even when I revisited this game in 2018 to finally complete the single player story mode. The moves and controls are similar to the first LoS so it didn't take very long for me to get aquainted with them. The game flowed very smoothly with the frame rates no matter how the graphic settings were for me.

Now, you're probably wondering why it took me 4 years to complete a game that I loved so much right? The answer is CONTROLS. Unfortunately, the developers listened to the nit wits that complained so much about the first one not having any controllable camera, so the devs made LoS2 ONLY have a player controlled camera option. This was annoying to say the least in always working the camera and also concentrating on battles and puzzles. Since the camera options did not help at all, the controls suffered immensely. There were many times where you had to do 2 or 3 things at one time and working that camera stick was far beyond annoying. This ultimately made me quit on this game for years! Then recently I made it a goal to complete the story mode since I was at the end part anyways (right before fighting Death). The storyline is god aweful as well, set in a timeline of the future in Castlevania city? With a mix of modern civilization and accursed monsters. It was more like a steampunk kind of environment, but not really. Also the fact you are suppose to be the all powerful Dracula, but appear to be much weaker and malevolent than even the minions in this game nevertheless the bosses.

Apart from that, I do want to mention the extravegant extras! The artwork was plenty and magnificent to see. The 2 extra costumes were very fun to play with, the boss fights had great music and were exciting to be in. The DLC so far has many puzzles, but you get to play as Alucard and that alone makes it totally awesome. But even with all of this, and even though I love the LoS series so much, I can not recommend this game. I am not saying that it is a bad game at all, but only saying that it is in my opinion the worst game of the 3 game LoS series. Others may not mind the controls or the direction the series went. It actually breaks my heart that I had to switch my recommendation in the middle of this review.

Time Bought: 2 months in closed beta, then purchased Early Access release
Money Spent: $40 Digital Deluxe
Worth The Price?: YES
Position In Game At Time Of Review: After stats wiped after closed beta I still play it every day on 2 steam accounts 5/13/15

Ok first off I'd like to mention that all the negative comments are true, you STILL are not able to kill any floors what so ever in this second installment. But again it is still in Early Access so maybe that will change! And they have released the SDK so maybe a modder can change this unfortunate mishap. Now let's get to the game in general.

Is it like KF1? Yes and No. Same kind of gameplay, same people, same zeds, even some of the same maps....but that 2 makes a BIG difference as you will notice MORE blood, MORE skins and gear options, MORE amazing graphic, and lastly MORE ways to kill and dismember every single thing in your way! And I'm not talking about just the zeds. The lighting in the room changes as lights blow out. Zeds can spawn out of manholes right under your feet or even fall into them LOL. And with the added animations, you will need to actually 'know' or 'feel' the mechanics of the game to perform perfect headshots now. Even though I still see noobs wasting like 3 pistol clips on a headless bloat o.O lol (wtf, right!?). You will have to play the game for some time to get the new game mechanics down since they are similar to KF1 but still very different as well. So far I've spent around 100 hrs to get to know the maps, spawns, reaction times, DIFFERENT ZED MOVEMENTS FROM NORMAL TO HOE, and even different camping places on some maps. I now feel comfortable swaying away from the 'group' and killing about 100 zeds on Hard on any of the 4 perks to finish out the wave. The end boss is MUCH more challenging than the Patriarch, but after knowing his 'system' then it get a little bit easier. But soloing him is not an option unless you read a guide or just get lucky. The different skins and voice overs are very enjoyable to me since they are all different voiced and say different things each. I really look forward to all the goofy ones to come in the future :) All in all, I think this game was worth the $40 pricemark even for an Early Access game. I play it on a daily regular basis and it's probably only 20% done!! The gameplay is fluid and alot less glitchy than other EA games I've played. So I'm pretty sure it will be well worth the price upon final release.

Time Bought: Pre Ordered
Money Spent: $37.50
Worth The Price?: Yes
Position In Game At Time Of Review: Have all my classes max leveled, have game & DLCs on 2 steam accts, got most of the sets epics and all godlikes, farming

After adding the first Van Helsing to one of the most favorite games I've ever played, VH2 only polished and added to the enjoyment where the first one left off. I was still playing the first one up to the release of this game and continued playing it during this one. But VH2 not only left off where the last story ended, but improved on tons of things to make this game even more enjoyable than the first. So with this in mind, I wrote a review for people new to the series as well as one for people who have played the first game and are considering getting this one.

Newcomers to the Van Helsing trilogy-
Even if you haven't played the first one, it would still be enjoyable to start with VH2. The reason for this is much like any other game, such as Borderlands 2. Playing the first one AFTER the second one will give you more depth in the story as well as make you appreciate all the changes that were done in the second game. Even though I would recommend playing the first one first, I don't see any spoilers at all in VH2 to the storyline of VH1. There are even items/gear that is reverse compatible ;) which you will probably think is pretty keen of the developers. Yes, it plays like Diablo 3, but that is by all means not a bad thing. But that comparison is very similar to saying Battlefield plays like CoD or MoH. And what about the "Gears of War" and "God of War" comparisons in other games. Yah, it's kinda like that :/ All in all, if you get VH2, you will be getting a great funny and very enjoyable RPG which you can co op up to 4 players as well as PvP. When you play it, you'll know it's going to be a great game from the photobomb on the title screen[www.twitch.tv] hahaha.

Ones who've played the first Van Helsing-
It may look like the same game but many things have been polished to fit customer satisfaction. For instance there are still 6 pages of storage, but now most of the gear takes 2 blocks instead of 3, and the storage space has been significantly expanded. So now there is over double the storage space of the first game. Along with the max level reaching 60 instead of 30, there are doubled the skills to mess around with! So you have the option of lvl10ing the skills and tricks you have ported over OR taking them off and starting a whole new tree of new abilities. Or you can even mix it. Oh yeah, as I stated, you can export over your powered up character from the first game :) The Chimera is not as powerful as it looks but is still a great addition as well as a little storyline within the sp story. Also the 'sets' and 'epics' have 'ink infested' versions which are level 60s. So even though you may have a complete set with the level ranges at 33 38 and 45, you can still farm for the all level 60 versions of that same set :)))) OMG, and wait until you get your first 'godlike' item!!! Besides that they just expanded on everything that made the first game so fun to play like: glory, perks, weapons & gear, laughs, easter eggs, tower defense, etc. The story, I would like to compare to The Matrix Reloaded. Not the best story, but essential in the trilogy and to any fan of the first game. It was also fun to play through with more boss fights and loot drops. So basically, I would definitely recommend this game if you've played through the first one even just once.

The DLCs-
I've written separate reviews on each DLC.

Time Bought: Pre Ordered Van Helsing 2 which included all DLCs
Money Spent: $37.50
Worth The Price?: No
Position In Game At Time Of Review: Have all my classes max leveled, have game & DLCs on 2 steam accts, got most of the sets epics and all the godlikes, farming

I have been a heavy supporter for the Van Helsing games so far and still continue to support them. I think they are fun and excellent games and the second one is a GREAT upgrade and more polished game than the first!!! And I still am enjoying farming for great loot to finish off my 'sets'. But I have to give this DLC a negative review. The pigasus is just another merchant, and the prices are VERY high. Not only that but putting essences in them to upgrade them are rediculously high as well. I have only bought 1 weapon from this merchant so far and don't expect to buy another one. You don't really need the weapons at all to enjoy the game. I have farmed many weapons that are much better than the ones sold by the Pigasus and I think I've only used the 1 weapon I bought for 10 minutes before putting it away in storage. The first Van Helsing game gave us Scenerio, PvP, and Neverending Story for free along with great DLCs. So to have them follow that up with a very short Ink Hunt and a worthless merchant leaves a very sour taste in my mouth. I pre-ordered the game in a 4pack deal for only $37.50 and expected at least 4 DLCs. After the first one, I expected the last 3 to be much better. Then they came out wth The Pigasus and announced it was the last DLC and I was extremely disappointed. Again, I love the game, but unfortunately this DLC has to be the worst one I've ever seen.

Time Bought: Jan 1st 2012
Money Spent: $7.50 for a 4pack
Worth The Price?: YES, and then some
Position In Game At Time Of Review: finished the story mode on normal with a co op partner

WOW, this game is AMAZING for the cheap price that they have it for now a days on bundles and steam sales!!! First thing you'll notice is the graphics are GREAT, on par or even better than alot of $40-$60 games in the same genre. Second thing you'll notice right away is the Gears of War type of gameplay. Which by all means is not bad at all!!! I played with my gf who is a gamer too and we just wanted something to pass a couple hours, but we ended up getting very into it!! And the whole time we kept complimenting so much about the game. We are going to try the other options in the game or play Scourge Project Ep 1 &2 the day after beating this game. It definitely goes into my category of magnicent sleeper games!!!!

Time Bought: Can not recall
Money Spent: Bought it in a 'bundle'
Worth The Price?: YES, and then some
Position In Game At Time Of Review: Finished story on Normal, doing hardest difficulty now, retrieved all weapon power ups and almost all achievments

I was quite surprised at how much fun I had playing this game!!! It kind of reminds me of Killing Floor a little but with a different gaming style. It didn't take to long for me to be obsessed with finishing the story mode and maxing out all my weps. Don't believe most of these 'below 1 hr playing' reviews that clearly are written by mo rons who didn't even give the game a chance. Like most games, you have to get used to the mechanics of the game to fully enjoy it, but that doesn't take too long. There are NOT that many glitches, and the few that I came across were more fun than disruptive. Playing co op was fun as well, but a voice chat and experience would definitely come in handy. Most of these reviews forgot to mention that there is a Survival Mode where you fend off waves until a certain time runs out for cash rewards to be used at the weapons store :) I'm going to move on to another game in my inventory, but if anyone wants/needs a co op partner then I'll be more than happy to join you!!!

Time Bought: Summer Sale 2014
Money Spent: $3.74
Worth The Price?: YES, and then some
Position In Game At Time Of Review: finished the story mode on normal setting, grabbed all secrets

This was my first Call of Juarez game that I played. First off the graphics blew me away! The graphical environment was very fluid and engulfing. Little things like leaves, dust, rust, and so many others highly impressed me. Along with the comic style artwork and great storytelling involved, I couldn't stop playing this until I heard the end of the story! And I enjoyed every second of it!!! The way that the game involved the main character with real life western outlaws and historical events was marvelous. Then along with that, you'll be entranced to collect all the 'secrets' to read up on real life wild western cultures, people, and events during the Ol Wild West era. The Story mode was short, but HIGHLY enjoyable. I highly recommend this game even for the regular price!